Improvement in bag-fasteners



W. TERRELL.

Bag-Fasteners. No. 216,583. Patentedlune 11,1879.

Witnesses N. PETERS, vHTovLvTMQGRAPHER. WASmNGTcN, D C.

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIcE.

WILL TERRELL, OF SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS.

IMPROVEMENT IN BAG-FASTENERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 216.583. dated J une 17, 1879; application filed i October 2l, 1878.

To all whom t may concern:

Beit known that I, WILL TERRELL, of San Antonio, in the county of Bexar and State of Texas, have invented a new and useful improvement in the manner of fastening bags and attaching labels or shipping-directions thereto, of which the following is a speci- Ication.l

The invention relates to mail, grain, or any other kind of bags.

Heretofore the mouths of grain-bags have almost invariably been tied with string, nothing having been invented, to my knowledge, which would answer the purpose better. This is objectionable on account of the liability of a bag closed in this manner to come nntied.

Mail-bags, except the leather bags used for firstclass matter, are tied the same way as grain-bags, or by a drawstring around the top.

The object of my invention is to provide a cheap and simple fastening for bags that may be easily adjusted, and so securely to fasten them as to prevent the loss of contents incident to the present system of tying bags With string also to provide, as a part of my system of fastening, address tags or labels as a part of the same.

An additional advantage -my fastening` has is, that it allows of locking any bag with a padlock.

My invention consists of a metallic post with a slot near the outer end, or a staple set into a metallic plate, which is fastened to the side of a bag, near the top, and also a springsnap, open ring, or padlock, to which is attached a label or shipping-directions.

Holes are placed at intervals around the top of the bag, so that concentrating these holes at a common center over the postor staple, and passing the open ring, springsnap, or bar of the padlock, with label attached, through the protruding slot in the post or end of the staple, closes and fastens the bag and attaches the label to it. V

In the accompanying drawings, in which similar letters of reference indicate like parts, Figure l is a perspective of a device embodying my invention. Figs. 2 and 3 show how the holes should be placed over the post. Fig. 4 shows the bag closed and locked. Fig. 5 is an enlarged perspective of the post and plate. Fig. 6 shows the spring-snap with label attached; Fig. 7, the padlock, and Fig. 8 the open ring with label attached.

The post B is fixed firmly in the plate A, and at the outward end of this post is the slot O, as is shown in Fig. 5. This plate with post is attached to one side of the bag, near the top, by rivets through the holes D in the plate A. At regular intervals around the top of the bag are placed holes large enough to pass easily over the post B. In the drawings five holes are used, (marked e o' e e e,) though any number of holes can be used. In closing the bag these holes Aare passed over the post B, as shown in Figs. 2, 3, and 4; and to secure them in this position over the post, onemof the fastenin gs in Figs. 6,7, or 8 is passed through the slot C, as shown in Fig. 4. The label is attached to the spring-snap, as in Fig. 6, to the open ring, as in Fig. 8, or to the bar of alpadlock, so that passing either of these through the protruding slot O in the post B, or through the protruding end ot" a staple used instead of the post B, attaches the label to the bag.

What I claimv is 1. In combination with a mail or other bag having holes around its open end, a plate, A, provided with a projecting post or staple, adapted to enter the holes and hold the bag closed, all substantially, as shown and described.'

2. A mail or other bag having holes at intervals around its open end, provided with an attaching plate having a projecting post or staple, upon which the holes may be concentrated in closingthe bag, and held iu place by means of a lock or other suitable device, all as substantially shown and described.

WILL TERRELL.

Witnesses:

C. M. TERRELL,

Major, United States Army. M. K. TAYLOR,

Captain and Assistant Surgeon, United States Nang/. 

